The Border-Gavaskar Trophy has come to an end and team India will now gear up in the white ball format in order to prepare themselves for the much-awaited ICC Champions Trophy 2025. The squad of Indian team is yet to be announced and there are multiple speculations on the 15 players that will travel to Dubai for this mega event. There are talks on the selection of KL Rahul over Rishabh Pant as a first-choice wicketkeeper, but how relevant this selection would be? Why should KL Rahul play ahead of Rishabh Pant in the Champions Trophy 2025? Let's find out: Selection Relevance: Rahul or Pant? Just few months back, KL Rahul was not even in the consideration for the position of wicketkeeper in India T20 World Cup squad. Rishabh Pant served as a wicket-keeper batter and went ahead to lift the trophy with the team. However, when it comes to the longer format in white ball cricket, Rishabh Pant finds himself below KL Rahul in terms of performance. Also Read | SA Sports Minister Backs Afghanistan Cricket Boycott In the last ICC ODI World Cup, KL Rahul served as a wicketkeeper for India where the later 452 runs in 10 innings that to at a staggering average of 75.33. He hammered those runs with the help of one century and two half-centuries His contribution with the bat in the middle order is something that cannot be neglected. The kind of stability that he provides is what seems to be missing in Rishabh Pant in this format of the game. On the contrary, Rishabh Pant is known for his aggressive nature and attacking gameplay. He can pull away the game from the jaws of defeat, but not every time these tactics would go in his favor. His way of playing is much suitable for the shorter format. Rahul, on the other hand, carries the experience of playing two ICC Cricket World Cups which makes his selection much obvious. In 72 ODI innings, KL Rahul has scored 2851 runs at a brilliant average of 49.15. He has smashed seven tons and 15 half-centuries in this format of the game. Rishabh Pant, on the other hand, has scored 871 runs at an average of 33.50 in 27 ODI innings. He has hammered one century and five fifties in this format of the game. Also Read | Shami Set for Comeback in India vs England Series 2025 Statistical Comparison of KL Rahul and Rishabh Pant in ODIs Players Matches Runs HS Average Strike Rate 100s 50s 4s 6s Ct St KL Rahul 77 2851 112 49.15 87.56 7 18 226 61 63 5 Rishabh Pant 31 871 125* 33.50 106.21 1 5 91 26 27 1